Category Archives: Samsung

Steve Cheney recently posted ten of his current thoughts on the mobile market. Included are thoughts on both Android and iOS, but also specific technologies — like NFC — that exist.

We’ve entered the age of iOS and Android penetrating beyond mobile, and there’s a lot happening with respect to how the entire ecosystem is developing. Mobile advancements / investments are now driving the progression of all converged hardware / software. Hardware innovation is also accelerating because of this tailwind. Here are some thoughts on what’s next for the dominant platforms as they stratify in mobile and non-mobile platforms.

Apple prides itself on offering award-winning customer service, with the iPhone alone having received nine straight J. D. Power and Associates awards for customer satisfaction. In a rather shocking turn of events, although, a new study shows that Apple has been dethroned from its position as number one in customer service.

The latest smartphone brand study by the American Customer Satisfaction Index (ASCI) shows that Samsung has topped Apple, with strong performances from its Galaxy S III and Galaxy Note II handsets. The aforementioned devices each received a score of 84 out of 100, while the iPhone 5 trailed closely behind at 82. (more…)

Samsung continues its aggressive marketing campaign against the iPhone with a new TV ad that depicts several Galaxy S4 features, including Easy Mode, Smart Switch, Smart Pause and a large 5-inch screen. In the one-minute spot, Samsung shows that an iPhone user can seamlessly make the switch to the Galaxy S4 by automatically transferring contacts, music, photos and text messages.

This latest ad is just another attempt by Samsung to prove that the Galaxy S4 is a cooler smartphone than iPhone. A seemingly annoying iPhone user who likes the simplicity of his Apple smartphone at the start of this ad is converted to a Galaxy S4 lover by a cool Samsung user in the end. Touché, Samsung, but the iPhone remains the top-selling smartphone in the United States for now.

This seems to be purely an optimization to produce repeatable (and high) results in CPU tests, and deliver the highest possible GPU performance benchmarks.

We’ve said for years now that the mobile revolution has/will mirror the PC industry, and thus it’s no surprise to see optimizations like this employed. Just because we’ve seen things like this happen in the past however doesn’t mean they should happen now.

At a time when sales are increasingly shifting towards smartphones, leading handset maker Samsung is looking to bring back the flip phone. After conquering the market with a myriad of Android-based smartphones, the South Korean giant plans to release a Galaxy feature phone in the coming weeks.

The device, which will allegedly be called the Galaxy Folder, is expected to have an 800 x 480 pixel display, dual-core Snapdragon S4 processor, LTE connectivity and Android 4.2.2 Jelly Bean. Look for the Galaxy Folder to launch in South Korea in the coming weeks, according to Korean website Digital Daily.

Apple and Samsung have one of the most checkered relationships in technology, but it appears that at least a part of Samsung and Apple have made nice and reached an agreement. According to The Korea Economic Daily, Samsung has agreed to provide Apple with 14 nm SoCs in 2015.

This comes after Apple signed a deal with another fabrication corporation, TSMC, to provide chips for the future. However, many questioned if TSMC could actually produce chips in the quantity that Apple requires for its high-profile iOS devices.

The future of Apple’s chip production seems to be up in the air. Many seem to think that Apple is interested in purchasing the necessary facilities to fabricate their own designs, though that would require a massive amount of capital. Others think that Apple will continue to design the chips, but have separate entities like Samsung and TSMC actually build them.

Samsung’s Galaxy S III became synonymous with “Android” last year, as it solidified the Korean juggernaut’s place as the number one smartphone manufacturer. The Galaxy S brand, which has existed since early 2010, received critical praise as it rose to become the primary competition to Apple’s iPhone. Samsung led the Android marketshare growth curve, as it pushed dozens of devices designed to appeal to all markets.

However, sales of the Galaxy S4 are beginning to concern investors. Analyst Jung Sang-jin asked ”is Samsung’s smartphone story now over? Not quite yet. It’s growth is indeed slowing due largely to disappointing sales of the S4.” (more…)

This ad has apparently come out of Samsung Iceland, although iFans cannot verify the authenticity of the YouTube channel. In the spot, an Icelandic man appears surprised that an apple — yes, the fruit — is not a smartphone. Thank goodness the Galaxy S4 exists. That would have been a huge problem on his hands.

While the iPhone continues to be the top-selling smartphone in the United States, the situation is quite different across the pond. The latest numbers from Kantar Worldpanel ComTech reveal that Android accounted for 70.4 percent market share in Europe during a three month period ending May 2013. The report is based on five major European markets: Great Britain, Germany, France, Italy and Spain.

Samsung smartphones, which represent nearly half of all Android-based handset sales in Europe, greatly contributed to the overall success of Android throughout the region. iOS held a meager 17.8 percent market share, comparatively, for a distant second place finish among mobile operating systems. Windows Phone ranked third with 6.8 percent market share. (more…)

Android, riding as a platform on the success of Samsung’s strategy of pushing dozens of devices in most form factors in almost every market, holds a huge lead over any other mobile platforms — including iOS — in terms of global marketshare. While iOS (and even other platforms, like Windows Phone) continue to do well in developed markets, Android’s penetration in undeveloped markets is becoming absolute.